"Aaargh, I'm so stressed!". Who among us have uttered that woeful sentence at work, or heard others do so? The word 'stress' is thrown around a lot these days, and it seems all of us suffer from it at one time or another.. If you thought ALL stress was bad - think again. Stress is natural, we cannot exist without a little of it in our lives. It sounds counterintuitive, doesn't it? It's only the way each individual deals with certain amounts of stress that eventually factors in whether it's bad for you or not.

What is it?

If allowed to get out of control, stress can damage your working life, and if you're an employer - your business. Almost 400 million pounds a year is lost due to stress-related illness in the employment sector. Now recognised as a bona fide medical condition and not, as some might think, just someone complaining of being unable to cope; stress has become a top priority of health conditions to address in the workplace.

The physical manifestations of stress can be anything from nail biting to insomnia, high blood pressure, and an inability to function on a normal, day to day basis. The non-physical elements can include mood swings, lapses of concentration, to full-blown depression. Needless to say, none of these things contribute to a productive life, both in and out of work. Stress, unfortunately, is unavoidable - so how can we control and manage it properly?

How to Manage Stress

The first thing is acknowledge exactly that - stress is unavoidable. Trying NOT to be stressed will - guess what - stress you out! Accept that stress is your reaction to something, not the thing itself (e.g. workload). That's why some of us rarely suffer, and some are flapping their arms around in a panic at the same kind of burden.

Physical exercise and activity can de-stress even the most wound-up people. Most corporations offer member-only gyms or discounts: take advantage of it! Mental exercise, that is, sharing your problems and talking with others (perhaps not even about stress, just about life), can ease the burden.
Staying healthy is important when stress is wearing you down. A few drinks after work might relax you, but you'll feel worse (and more stressed!) the next day.

You don't have to wait until after work to relax, either - take 5 minutes out away from your screen to do a little meditation, temple-rub or just sit in a quiet room and have a hot drink (caffeine in large doses, by the way, may not help your nerves). See it as YOUR time with no deadlines and outside influence, and re-tackle the day feeling fresh.

When stress gets too much

There's nothing worse than coping alone. If you really feel that your problems are either too personal or too hard to share with people you know, then there are many opportunities to seek help elsewhere: counselling is not a sign of weakness and almost every employer will have a designated way of dealing with workplace stress, often coupled with a helpline. If you are particularly affected by stress, then seek a professional opinion on how you can deal with it, and techniques that may help you individually.

Stress is a serious problem: but don't let it become yours.